Terms of Service
1. What BuildTrader is
BuildTrader is a venue where people list, discover, and communicate about surplus building materials, used tools, equipment and appliance parts, and local services. BuildTrader is not a party to any transaction and does not guarantee any item, price, or party. For materials and services we do not process payments or hold funds. For Tool Exchange and Parts Exchange orders, payment is collected at checkout through our payment processor and held until the carrier shows delivery, as described in Section 3a.
2. Seller authority
By posting a listing you affirm that you own the listed material or have the authority to sell it. Listing materials you do not have the right to sell, including client-owned materials, job-site materials, or stolen goods, is prohibited and will result in removal and account termination. This affirmation is recorded with each listing.
3. Transactions are between users
The sale itself is always between buyer and seller: title passes from seller to buyer, and BuildTrader bears no responsibility for the condition, quality, legality, or fitness of listed items, or for the conduct of users. For materials and services, payment, inspection, pickup, and any warranties are strictly between the two of you — inspect before paying.
3a. Tool Exchange and Parts Exchange orders
Exchange orders ship nationally and are paid at checkout through our payment processor. BuildTrader holds the payment and releases it to the seller after the carrier shows delivery; a fee of 10% of the order total plus 50¢ is deducted from the seller's proceeds. Sellers must upload valid tracking within 72 hours of the sale or the order refunds automatically. Item-not-received is the only covered claim: if tracking never shows delivery, the buyer is refunded. There are no returns — condition, fitment, and suitability are described in the listing, and buying is accepting that description. The seller, not BuildTrader, is the merchant of record for the sale.
4. Prohibited listings
No hazardous materials where resale is regulated or unsafe (e.g., asbestos-containing products), no recalled goods, no stolen property, no vehicle parts, and no items outside the marketplace's scope: building and landscape materials, tools and shop equipment, and equipment or appliance parts.
5. Privacy of pickup locations
Listings display approximate location only. Do not publish exact addresses in listing content; share pickup details through private messages.
6. Content and conduct
You grant BuildTrader a license to display the content you post. We may remove any listing or account at our discretion, including for fraud, misrepresentation, or abuse.
7. Changes
We may update these terms; continued use after changes constitutes acceptance.